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RE-UP: In memoriam Jeff Hanneman (1964-2013): SLAYER- Instrumental rehearsal session for “Hell awaits” (1985)

01-Oct-13

Hanneman Jeff

As I keep getting a lot of requests for this one and it since has not surfaced on other blogs, I make this outstanding recording available again for a limited time!

Please, after downloading, consider a donation (see donation-button on the left side). This blog is non-profit and ad-free, but its maintenance and hosting is not for free. It’s you, the readers and downloaders, who fund it!

 

[Original post from May 3, 2013:] I’ve never met Jeff Hanneman personally. Apparently, he died of liver failure yesterday, as the band officially states. If I ever were forced into putting down a list of the five single most important albums of my life, it would contain SLAYER’s debut, «Show no Mercy», and thus I can say that he’s been part of my past 30 years. Not as a human being, a person (he obviously was quite a character), but as a, well – riff monster.

«Kill ‘em all» had given my generation a foretaste – and «Show no Mercy» delivered the meat. Riffs that still sound “evil” to me, a (for the time) crystal clear style of playing note by note at high speed, cutting through your flesh like surgical steel. «Hell awaits» was a bit of a letdown, mainly due to its muddy production and with «Reign in Blood», SLAYER had stepped out of the shadow of the NWOBHM, mainly Judas Priest, that had originally shaped their sound. I liked every SLAYER album up until «Seasons int he Abyss», but after that one, they lost me forever.
Before writing much more (you’ll find some anecdotes of various people including my own in Goodbadmusic’s facebook page), here’s a first generation copy of a rehearsal tape that circulated in 1985 and was treated like a holy grail by many traders. From what I can tell, it’s been bootlegged on vinyl, but incompletely so. So here’s, maybe for the time, the entire tape. The acceleration part in “At Dawn they sleep” alone is PRICELESS and shaped my personal idea of what “evil” and “aggressive” should sound like more than anything, I believe. And although I always loved Tom Araya’s singing, these instrumental versions just fucking rip! A merciless onslaught of riffing and fast drumming, revealing many details that you probably never paid full attention to before.

Just a footnote, but did you know that the first ever SLAYER bootleg, the “Fuck the Slayer” LP, was made in tiny Switzerland, as early as 1984? That’s how much of an impact SLAYER had. A band that further divided traditional metal fans from the hardcore. And if you don’t own «Murder in the Front Row» already, now is the time to get it!

Download for a limited time (part1; part 2). The sound has not been polished up or altered in any way, it’s a straight 1:1 rip. Whatever files of this session you may already have – delete and replace them with these.

This is a tribute to Jeff Hanneman and SLAYER who with this day have ceased to exist.
I hope the remaining members have the decency to now put the band to sleep. It’s not like they would called it quits at the peak of their creative career anyway.

Sit terra tibi levis, Jeff Hanneman.

Filed in Metal, Quasi-religious moments in music, Tapes | | Comments (39) »

CRUCIFIX- s/t 12″EP (Universal Records, USA, 1981)

15-Sep-13

As of late, and don’t ask me why, I have learned to appreciate the debut by CRUCIFIX. It is sloppy, the guitar’s out of tune, the songs sound like the band was sedated, they’re just too slow. But still, this has got a lot of charme, especially when you think what a scorcher the following 7″ – and what a massive blast the LP was.

None of the five songs is particularly outstanding. “Religion kills” is kinda quick and short, and the refrain sounds like they would sing “Nature kills” and “Brazen Hell”, the longest of the five, I maybe enjoy the most, though it’s a total Negativ Trend rip off (“Black and red”!).

But as I said, it’s the ep as such that I learned to appreciate. It’s a pretty early release and even though Crucifix are often lumped in with Discharge, I really can’t hear any Discharge neither on this, nor the other releases. The anti-war topic, of course and the very uniformed look of the band from 1982 on (look at the backcover photo, how clean cut they still are!). Truth is: This eps materiality is just as important as the music. The cardboard stock of the cover, the fantastic red color, the old-fashioned backside, the labels, the company (why on earth “Universal Records”?) the lyricsheet – you hold these parts in your hands, play the record with its crude and raw sound and it just feels right.
First pressing is on black, second, more common one, on red vinyl.

Annual donation round is still up. Please make sure you drop in some greens to keep this blog alive, non-commercial and ad-free. Thanks.

Capitulation.mp3
You’re too old.mp3
Religion kills.mp3
Permanently damaged.mp3
Brazen Hell.mp3

Filed in American Utilitarian Hardcore, Hardcore, Kind of Garage Punk, Punk, White People can't dance | | Comments (8) »

Squirt, The: s/t Cassette Album (selfproduced, Switzerland, 1983)

12-Sep-13

First off – My goodbadmusic-sabbatical is over! I’ve been quite busy with some private stuff which has basically occupied me full time throughout the year.

So let’s kick off with two things here. An immensely great demo tape you haven’t heard before and with the annual donation round, which is open now (see the Donate-Button on top of the left column? Hit it!) . For those of you who wish to see goodbadmusic both continue and working, chip in, please. It’s the first donation round in two years, as I decided to pay the costs for maintenance last year all by myself, but now it’s your turn again. This  blog will only exist advertisement-free, non-commercial and crowd-funded. It’s been doing so since 2006. I spare you the obligatory self-praise, but as a more or less regular visitor, you will know what this source & platform of great music and knowledge is worth to you.
Needless to say, this is also a reminder to keep on commenting hard. Voice your opinion, share your wisdom or get back in touch together. I provide the sounds and some of the contents; the rest is up to you. Don’t be a sheepish consumer – get involved. Don’t just download – buy re-releases as they come available. We’ve had tens of thousands of retro-bands trying to do as their parents did (yawn) – let now follow thousands of retro-kids who actively support music in general. And by support, quite frankly, I mean: Spend money, but spend it wisely. You don’t need to support Spotify or iTunes or other rip off sources. Go vinyl & CD! Order from your local shops, order from labels and bands directly! I now could add some more exclamation point sentences, but I won’t.

I fucking lied! This demo rules! Think of the SQUIRT as the only swiss Hardcore band ever, or better: Think of this cassette as the only swiss Hardcore release. I’m not joking.
Little seems to be known about the Squirts, other than they came from Lucerne, a real shitass dump of town in central Switzerland, and older scenesters seem to remember them as a bit “difficult” (they rarely ever played out live and were not so much connected to he local scene). Seems to me they were just quite on a trip of their own, musically / technically surpassing every other swiss Hardcore Punk band of the time by far. Tight, fast, talented, with a great sense for riffing & interesting structures, this tape is just on top ofthe international Hardcore game. Recorded in November 1983, later (partially) re-released on vinyl on Weird System Records (in 1985, as “Men & their Masters”).
Maybe some ex-member chimes in sooner or later, that’d be fantastic, as this tape is a real stunner and since I never managed to come up with an explanation for the fact that Switzerland did not develop a proper Hardcore scene, maybe the SQUIRT will have their own point of view regarding this subject.

Download the entire cassette (15 raging songs; zip-folder) here.

Filed in Hardcore, Tapes | | Comments (12) »

CHEETAH CROME MOTHERFUCKERS- s/t 7″EP (Cessofonya Records, Italy, 1981)

12-May-13

Italy’s GERMS – only that CCM‘s first vinyl offering DESTROYS right from scratch (while the first Germs 7″ was charming, but honestly, unlistenable).
I’m sparing you from my usual blabber this time. Tune in, drop out, fuck off.

PS: The tracklist of this EP is kinda sketchy. The label lists different and not all songs, Discogs has yet a different one – I’m following the one given on the insert (including the typos). I’m aware of the fact that it’s probably not correct (except for “400 Fascists” – by the way one of the greatest songs ever made). Please correct, but not if you’re some 23 years old mp3 collector. Thank you.

Any Sacrifice.mp3
400 Fascists.mp3
Alkool.mp3
Handcluffs for.mp3

Filed in Hardcore, Italian anthropofugal Hardcore, People Chase-Away Punk, Quasi-religious moments in music | | Comments (8) »

GHOST- Year Zero Video

26-Mar-13

Tits, red meat, Papa’s meat, wine, tits, a devilish child and Satan himself channeling Heisenberg – what more do we need?

Filed in The Arts, Video | | Comments (4) »

OVERDRIVE- s/t 7″EP (Boring Grantham Records, UK, 1981)

07-Mar-13

One of the lesser known bands of the NWOBHM, with one of the main collectibles. This self-released EP by OVERDRIVE has three songs – and they’re all great! A bit on the SAXON-side of things, with reminiscence of SCARAB, but as always with these bands, you wouldn’t do OVERDRIVE much justice neglecting their very own, very original take on the emerging NWOBHM formula.
9 years after this, the band released a full LP, independently again. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, with some good songs and some stinkers.

PS: In 2011, Grantham (OVERDRIVE’s hometown, immortalized in the band’s label name) has been voted “most boring town in the UK” in the british newspaper Guardian. Seems like not much has changed there.

On the Run.mp3
Nightmare.mp3
Stonehenge.mp3

Filed in Metal, Towel around the Neck Metal | | Comments (7) »

ANTISECT: Out from the Void 7″ (Endangered Musik, UK, 1986)

20-Jan-13

Maybe this is and always has been more of a record that I wanted to like, than one that I really did like. I don’t recall the review I wrote for my fanzine, when “Out from the Void” came out, but I tend to believe that it wasn’t bad at all. Yet, in the years to follow, I sold the two copies I had of it. And when yesterday, I saw this single by ANTISECT for a reasonable price at some record store nearby, I just thought, what the hell – I’m buying this, but no matter what, I’m keeping it this time!
So I gave it some rounds today. I immediately knew what it was that I never liked, and that’s how the first song starts off. With these loud, reverby snare beats that sound like coming from some hairmetal band, and the main riff which sounds like many main riffs from particularly british punk bands that had caught the Metallica bug around the mid 80s (think of Concrete Sox or Broken Bones). But after a while, as the song evolves, I cannot deny a certain force it delivers. It’s well played, with a rather shitty production and yeah, the drumming is not the best, but it has some kind of a dark, eerie atmosphere that I’m fond of. The same could be said, except for the shittier metal parts, about the flipside. Generally, I appreciate the the way this single is done: No song titles, no info, just very basic, like a statement of some kind of urgency.
Don’t even talk about “In Darkness, there’s no Choice”, ANTISECT’s masterpiece, released two years prior to this. In a way, it’s grotesque to see how much the band changed and how little they seem to have understood what they did on the LP and what was so extraordinarily great about it. But that’s something you encounter quite often, maybe it’s even the regular process: Follow-up albums sometimes are trying too hard to come up with something new, at least from bands that are not just re-doing their formula over and over again. Maybe that’s a sign of artistic creativity and some form of bravery, whether or not the band succeeds. And when you listen to today’s boring crap in what’s left of the Punk or Hardcore scene, even a halfway failed attempt as this one here still gets the credit of at least trying something that was new at the time.

Out from the Void – Part 1.mp3
Out from the Void – Part 2.mp3

Filed in Bad experience Metal, End of the NWOBHM, Hardcore, Kinky Metal, Missed chances Part I, Motorcycle Punk, Redneck Punk, Towel around the Neck Metal, White People can't dance | | Comments (11) »

SCREAMING SNEAKERS- Marching Orders 12″ EP (Screaming Sneakers Records, USA, 1982)

06-Jan-13

I can’t say how I excited I was when not too long ago I heard the song “Violent Days” by a – to me – totally unknown band for the first time. SCREAMING SNEAKERS – it would sound like some sort of a comedy punk band, but as it soon showed, they were not.
Hailing from South Florida, the band moved to New York City, hoping that they’d “make it”. I think it’s fair to say that you can hear this striving for commercial success on this EP (which was recorded in NYC). From the speedy punk anthem “Violent Days” to the melancholic, new wavey “Grin and bear” and “Reflections”, to the (a bit annoying) “I can’t help it) (originally done by the Reactions): This EP was meant to be the Sneakers’ musical business card for the industry, that’s probably also why they focused heavily on the beautiful singer Lisa Nash so much. Needless to say, things didn’t work out in favor of the band’s.
All in all, this is a great EP – and “Violent Days” is one hell of a great song, with speed, adrenaline, a certain aura of facility, and yet with gloomy undertones. A bona fide punk classic that not too many have heard, unfortunately.

It took me a while to track down an affordable copy of this and here you have a quality vinyl rip at last.

Violent Days.mp3
Grin and bear.mp3
I can’t help it.mp3
Reflections.mp3

 

Filed in Out in Space, PeterPop, Post-Punk, Punk, Quasi-religious moments in music, Suicide Party Hits | | Comments (8) »

F- You are an E.P. 12″EP (Intendo Distorto Records, USA, 1984)

28-Dec-12

Soundcard issues have been fixed!

One of Florida’s greatest – and still surprisingly obscured 12″ by the notorious F.
The six songs on this ep rip hard! Great voice, great guitar, competent rhythm section and songs that just flow over with energy and aggression, although they are not played overly fast. Bands like Hypnotics or Secret Hate come to mind, if one wants to compare F to other, maybe slightly more known bands. But actually, I don’t find that rather unnecessary as F have a sound of their own, with a bit more of a raw edge to it (which partially results from the crude recording of this ep which clips here and there).
You may wanna check out F’s great contribution to the first Flipside Vinyl Fanzine. The Split LP with White Flag is so-so and that’s all the F that I have heard.

The stories around Fs antics are many: You may read Bob Suren’s piece in his excellent Florida Hardcore and Punk summary , Aesop’s insights are here for you to read or go on to KFTH (which also has the lyrics – my copy unfortunately is missing the two inserts). Some copies came with drawings on the cover, the band says 1500 were made (though, as Bob points out, numbers given differ). My guess would be 1000. Circa 200 of the pressing were destroyed during the record release party. Even the year of release is controversial, 1983 or 1984 (1984 seems to be more accurate). Repress (remastered) available, I heard – you may wanna google it up yourself.

No.mp3
In control.mp3
Spit it out.mp3
Citizen’s Arrest.mp3
Such Men are dangerous.mp3
My Country ’tis of thee.mp3

Filed in American Utilitarian Hardcore, Hardcore | | Comments (11) »

VENOM- Witching Hour Video Clip

26-Dec-12

First saw this on swiss national TV in 1982, when “Black Metal” was released. This was quite something back then, raw, evilistic and clearly a sign for new wicked things to come down our way.

Soundcard problems persisting. Things will get sorted soon, so stay tuned!

Filed in Video, White People can't dance | | Comments (3) »